The Conroe ISD board of trustees was presented with a total of 803 name suggestions submitted by the public for two new schools set to open over the next two years during its Aug. 21 board meeting. The CISD board of trustees began seeking public input on the naming of Flex 19, a K-6 elementary school set to open in the Oak Ridge High School feeder zone in fall 2019, and a new junior high slated to open in the Conroe High School feeder zone in fall 2020, on July 17. Public suggestions were submitted between July 18 and Aug. 13, garnering 302 submissions for Flex 19 and 501 submissions for the new junior high. Some of the most suggested namesakes for both schools are as follows: • Ruben W. Hope Jr. (183 votes) • Virginia Tamborello (162 votes) • Herbert W. “Kix” Lamp (158 votes) • David and Sheree Suchma (59 votes) • Rodrigo Chaves (54 votes) • Don Stockton (41 votes) • Rob Eissler (22 votes) The board will take the name suggestions into consideration during the Sept. 18 meeting. For more information on the board’s policy on school naming, click here. Other business The board unanimously adopted a $495.46 million budget for 2018-19, as outlined in the budget packet, and unanimously adopted an ad valorem tax rate of $1.28 per $100 valuation. Some of the budget highlights include a 2.5-3 percent salary increase for staff, a starting salary for teachers of $53,700 and funding for 15 additional police officers. “It’s very nice, obviously, that the community feels that we’re running a pretty good, efficient school district,” board member Ray Sanders said. “The fact that we got good ratings [and] we had no comments during the community comment time—I think that says a lot about our school district and what we’re doing.” The adopted tax rate of $1.28 is the same rate CISD adopted in FY 2017-18 and is the second-lowest school district tax rate in the Greater Houston area. To view the entire Aug. 21 board meeting agenda, click here.